Kafka drinks Coffee

April 17, 2016

There is a strong thread of magic, metaphisics and mysticism surrounding Kafka.

Why it is that those who study Kafka often discover that strange events surround him and sometimes downright miracles occur?

From his friends to modern scholars, many have written about the eerie coincidences that surround his life and death – what is it that makes people have those experiences?

In his latest nonfiction double biography "Burnt Books" Rodger Kamentez examines the vital role of imagination in the Jewish spiritual experiences in Kafka's stories. He points out the uncanny simmilarities between Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav, the mystical storyteller and grandson of the Baal Schem Tov, who created Chassidism and Kafka's form of storytelling and dascination with mystical Judaism.

We will explore Kafka's musings on the mystery of life through his aphorisms from The Blue Octavo Notebooksand The Zurau Aphorismshelped once again by Byron LaDue - our beloved Kafka reader!

The text with commentary of Kafka's afforisms can be downloaded for free here.